Self-contained and self-heating food, meal and drink package

ABSTRACT

A self-contained and self-heating food, meal and/or drink package, comprising a heat-resistant carton, a heat-resistant tray, a heating element, a container having a food, meal and/or drink sealed therein, and a pouch containing an activator solution for reacting with the heating element to generate sufficient heat to heat the food, meal and/or drink in the container. To heat the contents of the container, the heating element is positioned within the tray and the activator solution is applied to the heating element. The container then is positioned over the heating element in the tray, and the tray with the heating element and container therein is positioned within the carton which serves as an oven for heating the food, meal and/or drink in the container.

CROSS-REFERENCES TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a continuation-in-part of application Ser. No.12/591,580 filed on Nov. 24, 2009.

STATEMENT REGARDING FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCH OR DEVELOPMENT

Not applicable.

REFERENCE TO A MICROFICHE APPENDIX

Not applicable.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

The present invention relates to a self-contained meal and a portablepackage for containing the meal and for heating the same.

2. Description of the Background Art

There is a need for self-contained and self-heating food, meals anddrinks in environments where there is no electricity or fire, such as inthe military, natural disaster relief efforts and other emergencysituations, camping, fishing, boating, travel, vending, school campusesand the like. While some self-contained and self-heating food, meal ordrink packages have been developed for these purposes, they all havebeen subject to one or more of the following disadvantages:

1. They have been expensive to manufacture; and/or

2. They have been of poor quality and thus unreliable in operation withrespect to temperature or the like; and/or

3. They have taken too long to heat a meal to a required temperature orto maintain a desired temperature for an adequate time period; and/or

4. They have been subject to breakage, deterioration or leakage; and/or

5. They have had a short shelf life; and/or

6. They have been difficult to use; and/or

7. They can expose the hands of a user to residues or high heat; and/or

8. They do not have quality temperature growth and stability.

Accordingly, a need has arisen for a new and improved self-contained andself-heating food, meal and/or drink package which is not subject to anyof the above-listed disadvantages. The self-contained and self-heatingpackage of the present invention meets this need and possessessignificant advantages over previously used packages of this type.

BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The new and improved self-contained and self-heating food, meal and/ordrink package of the present invention meets or exceeds all currentmilitary and government performance specifications and regulations forsuch packages, and goes beyond meeting all civilian and institutionalregulations by USDA and FDA.

The package of the present invention generally comprises a carton formedof a suitable material such as cardboard or the like, as morespecifically described hereinafter; a meal sealed in a container; aheating element; a pouch of activator solution for the heating element;a tray to hold the heating element and the meal; eating utensils andwritten instructions. The heating element is porous and has acomposition that is electrochemically heated when exposed to theactivator solution to heat the self-contained food, meal and/or drink ina required period of time.

To heat the contents, the package is opened and components are removedtherefrom leaving the heating element in the tray. The activatorsolution in the pouch is poured onto the heating element. Theself-contained food, meal or drink container is then placed on top ofthe heating element and the tray is slid back into the carton whichserves as an oven for the heating process in a pre-determined period oftime.

The self-contained and self-heating food, meal and/or drink package ofthe present invention is simple in construction, easy to use andreliable in operation.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is an exploded perspective view of the components of theself-contained and self-heating meal package of the present inventionshowing the carton opened and the components removed therefrom, with theexception of eating utensils and written instructions;

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the heating element positioned in thetray of the package and the activator solution from the opened pouchbeing poured onto the heating element;

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the self-contained meal container beingpositioned on the heating element in the tray after the activatorsolution has been poured onto the heating element;

FIG. 4 is an enlarged side elevational view in section of the componentsshown in FIG. 3 being positioned in the carton for the heating of theself-contained meal;

FIG. 5 is a perspective view of the self-contained meal container beingpositioned on the heating element in the tray in an inverted positionafter the activator solution has been poured onto the heating element;and

FIG. 6 is an enlarged side elevational view in section of the componentsof FIG. 5 being positioned in the carton for the heating of theself-contained meal.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

FIG. 1 illustrates the components of the self-contained and self-heatingmeal package of the present invention, namely, a heat-resistant carton10 shown open at one end 11, a heat-resistant deep tray 12, a heatingelement 14, a meal M sealed in a suitable container 16, e.g., a highdensity polymer, and a pouch 18 containing an activator solution for theheating element 14. Prior to use, the components 12, 14, 16 and 18 areenclosed in the carton 10 in a suitable manner along with eatingutensils (not shown) and written instructions (not shown). Thecomponents 10-18 of the meal package of the present invention may be ofany suitable size and shape, and are constructed in accordance with thedescription set forth hereinafter.

The carton 10 may be formed of any suitable material and, preferably, isformed of cardboard having an aluminum foil lining on the inner surfacethereof, with the shiny side of the aluminum foil facing inwardly andbeing of food grade quality. In one embodiment, a layer of food gradepolyethylene may be laminated over the shiny side of the aluminum foil.The use of the aluminum foil lining with the shiny side facing inwardlyserves to retain heat in the carton 10 when the meal container 16 ispositioned therein for heating, as will be more fully explainedhereinafter. As an illustrative example, the above-described cartonconstruction has been able to sustain a peak temperature of 190° F. fora period of at least three minutes, and to maintain a temperature of140° F. for at least 20 minutes.

The tray 12 is formed of a suitable heat-resistant material such asStyrofoam or a suitable plastic or plastic coated cardboard. The tray 12may be of any suitable size and shape that would fit within the carton10 as described hereinafter.

The heating element 14 may be in the form of a porous brick and is ofsuitable size and shape so as to fit within the tray 12 and allow themeal container 16 to be placed thereon in the tray 12 such that allthree components can be positioned within the carton 10 for heating asdescribed hereinafter.

Preferably, the composition of the porous brick heating element 14 issuch that it will generate sufficient heat to heat the meal container 16in the carton 10 to a sufficient temperature in a required period oftime when the activator solution in the pouch 18 is poured thereon. Inone embodiment, the porous brick heating element 14 is formed of whitemetallic corrodalloy element, UHMWPE (ultra high molecular weightpolyethylene), LDPE (low density polyethylene), and tartaric acid.

The pouch 18 may be formed of any suitable material for retaining theactivator solution therein, such as a high density polyethylenewhite/polyester, combination. The pouch is formed of an opaque film toreduce algae growth in the solution therein.

The activator solution is of a suitable composition that will reactelectrochemically with the porous brick heating element 14 to generatesufficient heat to heat the meal container 16 sufficiently whenpositioned in the carton 10. As an illustrative example, when the porousbrick heating element 14 is formed of white metallic corrodalloyelement, UHMWPE, LDPE and tartaric acid, the activator solution isformed of water with salt at about 5.5%, surfactant at about 5% andalgaecide at about 5% by weight. For a porous brick heating element witha mass of 40 g, it has been found that the corresponding optimal mass ofactivator solution is 80 g.

The meal container 16 preferably is formed of a heat-resistant plasticmaterial, such as a polypropylene/polyester film filled with cut glassin the center thereof, or aluminum foil with food grade polyethylenelaminated on the inside surface thereof, having the meal sealed therein.Such films are able to withstand high temperatures, do not produce anynegative smells or tastes in the meal when heated, and provide a shelflife for the food, meal or drink of up to five years.

In the use of the self-contained and self-heating meal package of thepresent invention, the carton 10 is opened at one end and the tray 12,heating element 14, meal container 16 and activator solution pouch 18are removed therefrom as shown in FIG. 1. Thereafter, the heatingelement 14 may be left in the tray 12 or thereafter positioned withinthe tray 12, and the activator solution in the pouch 18 is pouredthereon, as shown in FIG. 2.

The container 16 is then placed on the heating element 14 in the tray12, as shown in FIGS. 3 and 5 and the tray 12 with the heating element14 and meal container 16 therein is positioned within the carton 10, asshown in FIGS. 4 and 6 for the heating of the contents of the container16. The electrochemical reaction of the activator solution and theheating element generates sufficient heat in the carton 10 which acts asan oven to heat the contents of the container 16 sufficiently in arequired period of time.

Preferably, the meal container 16 is positioned within the carton in aninverted position as shown in FIGS. 5 and 6 for the reason that theupper layer of the meal container 16 is thinner than the other portionsthereof which will result in faster heating of the contents thereof.Within the scope of the present invention, the meal container 16 may bepositioned in the carton in an upright or inverted position depending onthe construction of the meal container 16.

It is important that the tray 12 be deep enough to prevent burning ofthe hands of the user when the heated meal 16 and tray 12 are removedfrom the carton 10. With the use of the self-contained and self-heatingpackage and method of the present invention, it is possible to generatefood, meal or drink temperatures in the carton 10 above 190° F. only oneminute after activation for at least three minutes. In this manner, ithas been possible to heat the container contents adequately forconsumption within approximately seven minutes after starting theheating process which is a significant improvement over previously usedself-contained and self-heating meal packages which can takeconsiderably longer to heat. Also, the temperature of the heated food,meal or drink can be maintained at an even temperature of 140° F. for atleast twenty minutes in the carton 10.

As an additional feature, the carton 10 may be provided with atemperature indicator (not shown) on the outer surface thereof thatindicates the temperature of the food, meal or drink in the container 16when heated.

While the invention has been described in connection with what arepresently considered to be the most practical and preferred embodiments,it is to be understood that the invention is not to be limited to thedisclosed embodiments, but on the contrary, is intended to cover variousmodifications and equivalent arrangements included within the spirit andscope of the appended claims.

1. A self-contained and self-heating food, meal and/or drink package,comprising: a heat-resistant carton; a heat-resistant tray of a size andshape to be received within said carton; a heating element of a size andshape to be received within said tray; a container having a food, mealand/or drink sealed therein, said container being of a size and shape tobe received within said tray on top of said heating element such thatsaid tray with said heating element and said container therein isreceivable within said carton for the heating of the food, meal and/ordrink; and a pouch containing an activator solution for reacting withsaid heating element to generate sufficient heat to heat the food, mealand/or drink in said container when it is positioned within said cartonon top of said heating element in said tray after the activator solutionis applied to said heating element.
 2. The package of claim 1 whereinsaid carton is formed of cardboard having an aluminum foil layer on theinner surface thereof with a shiny side of the aluminum foil facinginwardly.
 3. The package of claim 2 wherein a layer of food gradepolyethylene is laminated over the shiny side of the aluminum foil. 4.The package of claim 1 wherein said tray is formed of Styrofoam, plasticor plastic coated cardboard.
 5. The package of claim 1 wherein saidheating element is a porous brick heating element.
 6. The package ofclaim 5 wherein said porous brick heating element is composed of whitemetallic corrodalloy element, UHMWPE, LDPE and tartaric acid.
 7. Thepackage of claim 1 wherein said container is formed ofpolypropylene/polyester film.
 8. The package of claim 7 wherein saidpolypropylene/polyester film is filled with cut glass in a centerportion thereof.
 9. The package of claim 1 wherein said container isformed of aluminum foil with food grade polyethylene on an inner surfacethereof.
 10. The package of claim 1 wherein said pouch is formed of ahigh density polyethylene opaque white/polyester combination.
 11. Thepackage of claim 6 wherein the activator solution in said pouch iscomposed of water, salt, surfactant and algaecide.
 12. The package ofclaim 11 wherein said porous brick heating element has a mass ofapproximately 40 g, and the activator solution has a mass ofapproximately 80 g.
 13. A method of heating the food, meal and/or drinkin the self-contained and self-heating meal package of claim 1,comprising: positioning said heating element within said tray; applyingthe activator solution from said pouch onto said heating element;positioning said container on top of said heating element in said tray;and positioning said tray with said activated heating element andcontainer therein within said carton so that said carton acts as an ovenfor heating the food, meal and/or drink within said container.
 14. Themethod of claim 13 wherein said container is positioned on top of saidheating element in an inverted position.
 15. The method of claim 13wherein said container is positioned on top of said heating element inan upright position.